Love.

Love is a feeling that people spend their whole lives looking for.  We watch movies to see others fall in love, and we go to weddings to celebrate when others find love.  Love crosses lines, and races, and social issues and language barriers.  Most people when they think of love the probably think of a man and a woman kissing or planning their future together, but love is so much more; and we tend to forget the love that we have in our lives right now.

I am 27, single and I haven’t every really been in a serious relationship; but by no means does this mean that I am not loved, nor that I have felt love.  This past weekend my family drove over 6 hours to spend four hours with me.  If that isn’t love I don’t know what is.  We were able to laugh and had a good time, and it was totally worth the drive.  When I was saying good bye to my family I started to cry, because realistically I am a crier, my mom said that she was happy that I was crying because crying meant that I loved her – like that was ever a question!

This statement got me to thinking, what are ways that I show, and receive, love without it being a romantic love.  I believe that there is love around me every day.  It could be a cute text message that I get from my family, or looking at picture that bring memories back of a time when I felt loved.  I personally believe that we as a society spend too much time trying to show others that we are loveable that we don’t truly love the most important person in our lives… ourselves.

Self love and self acceptance is a very important trait to have.  I believe that if you truly love who you are others will also love you in return.  I have been talking to some of my friends back home about how I wish I had more friends in my new area; and they have said to just give it time because everyone likes me.  I am not entirely sure that I believe this and I am sure I have some people out there would disagree, but I love who I am, and I know that there are others who will also love me.  I haven’t ever really struggled making friends because I accept who I am, which allows me to accept others for who they are. 

When I wake up every morning I lay in bed and think of things that I am happy for, and that I love.  This morning, I knew I wanted to write about love so I thought about the traits I have that I love – here are a few examples of what I love about me:

• I love that I have an awesome brain that allows me to have amazing dreams that I don’t want to wake up from
• I love that I have the ability to laugh at the world around me, and makes the life I live easier to live when everything is funny
• I love that I am learning to let the day control me, instead of me controlling my day – it has allowed for some awesome opportunities to come into my life
•  I love the feeling when I crack my back and it feels as if all the stress I was carrying is gone
• I love the way I am able to take every song that I listen to and have it relate to my life – music puts a smile on my face as I am able to remember all the amazing events and people in my life

Your ability to love should start with yourself and work its way out.  I am not saying that this is easy and sometimes the hardest thing to do in a day is thing of five things that you love about yourself; but I promise you that as you begin to love who you are, you will attract others into your life who love you for you as well.  I know that you are a loving person and able to give so much love to the world, you just have to believe it!

You have it all & Confidence,

Lyndsay